Miko in Makai
by Whisper of Yesterday
Summary: There is a problem in Makai that requires the help of Koenma's team. Too bad that the problem has turned into a major security breach and politicians are involved.
1. The New Case

**I own nothing but the plot I created, bending the characters to my will.**

**PLEASE ENJOY!**

**Chapter One - The New Case**

Kurama and Hiei were waiting patiently...well, at least in the fox's case, in Lord Koenma's office awaiting their missing team members so they could all be briefed on this new mission.

'And it was turning out to be such a quiet day,' Kurama thought with some regret. As if on cue, a familiar portal opened and unceremoniously dumped Yusuke and Kuwabara on the floor.

"Detective, you need to learn how to land on your feet," Hiei remarked from his position against the wall. Ruby eyes opened and pinned the Prince of the Spirit World in place. Noticing Hiei's mood, Kurama smoothly intervened while Yusuke and Kuwabara stumbled to their feet and looked sourly at the toddler behind the desk.

"Lord Koenma," the fox began, "why did you call us here? Is there a problem that requires the attention of all of us?"

Koenma looked the only member of the team in his employ that treated him with any level of respect and shot him a grateful look as he nodded. "Yes, that is exactly why you are all here. There is a problem in Makai-"

"What the hell Koenma? I thought we settled this crap," Yusuke interrupted. Koenma just sighed and continued as if he hadn't been rudely cut off.

"There is a problem in Makai, specially in the lands past the Forest of Ages. These lands are the only ones not under Enki's rule because they were never ruled by Yomi, Mukuro, or Raizen. The lord of these lands has a long-standing treaty with Reikai stating that as long as there is no demons spilling into Ningenkai from these lands, then Reikai cannot and will not interfere with these lands. The lord has contacted me with a problem recently. His representation should be arriving soon to explain the details. As far as I know-"

Koenma was interrupted again, but this time by a few knocks on his door. It opened enough for Botan to enter with a serious look on her face for once. "Lord Koenma, the representative from the Western Lands is here. Shall I show her in?"

"Yes, thank you Botan." Koenma glanced over at his team and continued, "Looks like our answers are here."

The blue-haired grim reaper bowed out and a few seconds later came back with a young woman following her. Botan turned back to leave the office when she was stopped by the guest's hand on her arm, holding her in place.

"No, please stay Botan. Since I'm sure that you'll be filled in later, I see no reason why you can't stay and listen now." The woman smiled at the ferry girl and turned her bright blue gaze to the rest of the group, her eyes snagging and stopping on Kurama. Her smile grew as she stared at him and he smiled as he recognized her as well.

"Hello Youko. You've changed a bit I see. Was my Shippou your inspiration for this new form," she asked. She walked towards the grinning fox and pulled him into a tight hug. She laughed as he picked her up and swung her around in circles; she was still smiling when he put her down.

"My dear friend, you have changed as well," Kurama said to the representative as his eyes turned gold. "Since when have your eyes been blue? Though I have to say, I love the change." The fox leaned in and kissed her cheek, mischievous grin still in place.

The blue-eyed woman laughed and kissed him back. "Careful you sneaky fox or you'll make your lover jealous. Shippou sends his love and can't wait to see you. Fluffy would too, but," she shrugged, " you know how he is."

Taking a deep breath she stepped away from Kurama, whose eyes faded back to green, and looked over the room's occupants again; with a solemn look on her face, she turned the full force of her stare on Koenma. Bowing the Reikai prince, she then straightened and introduced herself, power pooling around her and in the force in her words. "My name is Higurashi Kagome. I am here today as the representative of the ruler Western Lands. I am here to honor the treaty between Lord Sesshoumaru and Reikai, upheld since it was first written approximately 490 years prior when the first Kekkai Barrier was put into place. Per the condition of aide in the treaty, I am here to request the help of Reikai; this request concerns only the Western Lands and Reikai in accordance with the elimination of demonic traffic from the Western Lands into Ningenkai. Lord Koenma, Prince and current acting ruler of Reikai, do you here acknowledge me, Higurashi Kagome, as the representative of Lord Sesshoumaru of the House of the Moon, ruler of the Western Lands of Makai, the lands beyond the Forest of Ages? Do you agree to honor the treaty between our lands by dispensing aide to the Western Lands to resolve this issue?"

Koenma solemnly nodded, never breaking eye contact with Kagome. "I, Prince Koenma of Reikai and the current acting ruler, so do swear to dispense aide to the Western Lands to be used by the ruler, Lord Sesshoumaru of the House of the Moon, and thereby fulfill the treaty between our lands. I also acknowledge you, Higurashi Kagome, as the representative of the Western Lands, the lands beyond the Forest of Ages." After Koenma finished the formal reply, the power that had been gathering around the blue-eyed representative dissipated along with her serious expression that melted into a smile.

"Good, now that everything legal and formal is taken care of," Kagome began, "Prince Koenma, will you please introduce these men?"

Koenma nodded his head and started to introduce the group of disobedient employees. "You know Kurama, or Youko," he gestured to the redhead and Kagome received another hug. "Yes, you will explain that association later I presume. Next to him is the leader Urameshi Yusuke-" Once again, Koenma was interrupted.

"Yo. Call me Yusuke pretty lady," the delinquent leader said with a cheeky wink in Kagome's direction. To everyone's amusement, she looked over at him, raised an eyebrow and turned back to face Koenma; Kurama's arm was slung over her shoulder and he squeezed it gently in amusement while he smirked over at Yusuke's shocked expression.

Koenma cleared his throat and pointed to the tallest of the group. "That is Kuwabara Kazuma. He is the only full human on the team and has incredibly high spiritual senses." Kuwabara puffed out his chest and attempted to go down on one knee in front of the representative, but settled for standing and looking manly when Kurama looked over at his and gave him an amused shake of his head. Koenma waved his hand over at the apparition still leaning against the far wall, "And that is Hiei."

To everyone's surprise but Kurama, Kagome stepped away from the redhead and up to Hiei and hugged the short man; everyone could see her whispering in his ear, but not even the demons could hear what she said. Kuwabara's jaw dropped when Hiei hugged Kagome back; Yusuke reacted a bit more vocally, "What the hell? I get shrugged off and the shrimp gets a hug?" Hiei smirked over Kagome's shoulder at the detective. The blue-eyed woman released the fire apparition and, after raising both eyebrows at Yusuke, turned away and walked over to Koenma's desk.

She bowed to all of them and said, "Please, call me Kagome. Unfortunately, my brother insists on formality, so you might want to let Youko do the talking for you all."

"Brother? Who's your brother," Kuwabara asked, scratching the back of his head. Kurama laughed heartily at the question and everyone's gaze turned to him.

"She means Lord Sesshoumaru," the fox explained. Eyes swung back to Kagome and once again, Yusuke seemed unable to keep his opinions to himself.

"Uh, you're not a demon, you're not even half demon. How the hell are you the lord's sister?"

"Hn. Detective, listen first. Ask questions after," Hiei interjected before Yusuke could go on further.

Kagome smiled brightly in Hiei's direction. "I was adopted by Sesshoumaru as his little sister some time ago. That is also why I was chosen as his representative, despite me being human." Her smile turned sheepish as she continued, "Well, the fact I'm his sister and that I harassed him until he agreed so I would shut up."

"Who was his original choice," the fox wanted to know.

"You mean aside from trying to handle it himself and not asking for help at all? His first choice was Akihito, the commander of his elite soldiers. I convinced him it was a bad idea, not only because I wanted to come, but because communicating often works better if the communicator doesn't have a 'kill now, ask later' outlook on life and diplomacy."

"So, how do you know Kurama," Kuwabara wanted to know. Kagome looked over at the man in question with an inquiring look on her face; she received a nod in response.

"Well, that is actually a long story. I met Youko," she interrupted herself and looked wryly at Kurama. "I suppose I should start calling you Kurama now. Anyway, I met Kurama when the Land of the Three Kings was being formed and some demons were settling in Sesshoumaru's land for various reasons. Kurama's reason was because the Forest of Ages, while ruled and inhabited by no one, is more accessible on the side of the Western Lands. All demons who wished to live in the Western Lands had to be accounted for and their names taken down to stop the movement into Ningenkai so that the treaty could be written; I happened to be in charge of checking the canines and found him trying to sneak through without giving any information. After fighting each other a bit, I found out he was my Shippou's cousin of some sort; naturally we saw each other more often and became close friends. It's hard not to after nearly five hundred years of friendship." Before Yusuke could open his mouth again, Kagome continued, "The Shippo I keep talking about is my son. He is a red fox demon. Obviously, the species difference means I adopted him," she added with another amused glance at the men in he office. "Shall we get down to business?"

Koenma spoke up, "Please explain the situation."

Kagome looked thoughtful, then addressed the silent Botan. "Botan, do you think you could create a portal to the Forest of Ages and Enki's land borderline? As we walk through to Sesshoumaru's current residence, I'll explain the problem."

"Aw man! We have to walk? Why can't Botan just make a portal go to the place we ant to go," Kuwabara wanted to know.

"I can't create portals anywhere except in the lands ruled by Enki," Botan explained. "It's part of the treaty."

"Don't worry, it's not that long of a walk," Kagome reassured. "Sesshoumaru and his court are housed at my place actually; it's the closet to the Forest of Ages. Koenma, you are welcome to join us." Koenma nodded his acceptance and, with a _pop_ and a puff of smoke, he transformed into his teenaged self.

"Open the portal Botan," the Reikai prince ordered. The ferry girl cheerfully saluted her boss and promptly opened a portal. Within a few minutes, the office was empty and a new adventure was on it's way.

**END**

**Yu Yu Hakusho was written by Yoshihiro Togashi.**

**InuYasha was written by Rumiko Takahashi.**


	2. The Story of Kagome

**Once again, I own nothing but the plot I created, bending the characters to my will.**

**PLEASE ENJOY!**

**BEFORE YOU START: I have an important announcement.**

I am finally finished with the immersion program I entered in June (YAY!) so I should now have mostly regular monthly updates of all my stories. I'm trying to make each chapter longer than the last, but that isn't a given. HOWEVER, each chapter will be 1500 words at least.

**SECOND IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!**

I have some pretty awesome people to dedicated this chapter to:

**Born-at-dawn** – You're question is answered in this chapter!

**Elfgurl96**

**Fairy Demon26** – You're answer lies in this update! Thank you for being this story's first reviewer!

**jesswolf22**

**Kidnapped by a Demon**

**LeafeKnight7**

**loretta537**

**meme aka strawberrygash3s**

**Merky15**

**nowyouseemenowyoudont** - I'm glad you like the 'Kagome is human' thing! That's one of the reasons I started this story.

**Passing-Glance**

**Rhianna224**

**sara** – Thanks for pointing out the anime/manga difference. I do have a reason for stating the change of eye color though.

**ShadowLover18**

**Stebba stud28**

**twilightrose07 **

**valeries26** - Just thought I would try something different as a pairing, glad you like it!

**Chapter Two - The Story of Kagome**

_Previous Chapter:_

_"Open the portal Botan," the Reikai prince ordered. The ferry girl cheerfully saluted her boss and promptly opened a portal. Within a few minutes, the office was empty and a new adventure was on it's way._

The portal opened in front of a large forest and, once again, Yusuke and Kuwabara ended up in a heap on the floor. Kagome jumped out, landed on her feet and laughed outright at the pair on the floor. "Well, well, well, I suppose that is one way the land. Not the most comfortable, but it works. How long have you boys been doing this kind of work? A year?"

Yusuke glared at the laughing woman and scrambled to his feet. "I've been doing the toddler's work for nine years now, along with the rest of us. Portals still dump me on my face."

"Nine years?" Kagome blinked in surprise. "You were in junior high then when you started?" She shared an amused glance with Kurama and said, "I know exactly how you feel. Pain in the ass when you need to go to class but have a case, isn't it?"

"So, where are we going exactly," Koenma asked before Yusuke could respond that class was never the problem because he never went _before_ he worked for Koenma.

Kagome pointed to the forest in front of them and offered a cheeky grin. "Right through there. These two trees here," she fondly patted the trunk of a giant pine and gestured to its mate, "mark the pathway to my place in the Western Lands." She walked straight into the forest and motioned for everyone to follow her. "We should be there in a few hours."

Once everyone had formed a group around the lord's sister and started walking, she spoke again. "So, the problem we are facing now is simple. Unfortunately, taking care of the problem is not so simple. There is a rebellion group on the Kekkai Barrier boundary line that is trying to tear a hole in a weakened area; they have succeeded somewhat and several D and E-class demons have managed to sneak through. In a few more days, the hole will have gone through completely and it will be enough to let out B and A-class demons. A week after that happens, there will be a stabilized portal to Ningenkai that S-class demons can leisurely walk through." Tension flowed through the group with her words.

"Why were we not notified before this Kagome," Kurama asked, his amusement gone.

The woman sighed resigned. "Because up until yesterday, I was closing the breach and Sesshoumaru's armies were eliminating the idiots before they broke through. Yesterday was business as usual; I was closing the tear and was being covered by an obscene amount of soldiers." She tossed a smile over her shoulder to those behind her, "My brother is ridiculously over-protective of me. Anyway, we were ambushed. The rebellion group was much larger than we thought and they are being lead by a group of five S-classes we didn't know about; even worse is that these leaders were a part of Sesshoumaru's elite guard up until a year ago, so they have supporters in the current armies we have to ferret out. Because of this, we don't know who can be trusted to guard the barrier. We also have the problem of the tear; it was almost closed yesterday, which is why no one was informed. The power from the ambush caused the hole to triple in its original size and most of that is my fault." She looked over her shoulder again and received solemn looks.

Kagome turned around again and clenched her hands into fists briefly before going on. "I'm a priestess; that is why I was able to close the barrier and why the Western Lands were able to form a treaty with Reikai in the first place. I purify all demons that try to go through to Ningenkai without proper authorization and everyone that lives here knows that. I don't like killing, but it is necessary for peace. All this came about on my fifteenth birthday, when I was dragged down a well at my family's shrine. When I woke up at the bottom, I climbed out and was five hundred years in the past in Feudal Japan." She went on to describe how she met InuYasha, Shippou, Miroku, Sango, and Kouga. "Sesshoumaru is InuYasha's half-brother and tried to kill us many times before. Once Naraku entered the picture, we formed an alliance with him that saved us all in the final battle. After the defeat of Naraku, which we all miraculously survived, I was sent back to my time and my old life for three years and I graduated high school. Then I made the decision to live in Feudal Japan with InuYasha as his lover." The blue-eyed woman smiled sadly to herself as she remembered. "After two years of this arrangement, we realized that things would not work as well as we had hoped it would. I called on the missing piece of my soul and resurrected Kikyou as a human; she worked with me and we linked her soul to InuYasha's soul. If one of them dies, so does the other. They are very happy, happier than InuYasha and I were together; surprisingly, they live in Ningenkai. InuYasha started and owns a security company, 'GuardDogs' ironically, and Kikyou functions as his secretary and scans all his clients and potential employees for personality traits and any lies they tell. They were married about four hundred years ago. Sango and Miroku married, had three children, and died happily of old age in each other's arms four hundred and thirty-six years ago. Their memorials, along with those of Kohaku, Rin, and all the children and grandchildren, are in my garden."

Kurama walked next to Kagome and gave her a one-armed side hug to comfort her. He knew how much she had loved those she had lost. Kagome smiled up at the fox, hugged him back, and turned around. Walking backwards, she kept talking. "Sesshoumaru was the Western Lord since his father, InuTashio, died about six hundred and fifty years ago. Kouga was the leader of all the wolves until the Three Kings started their reign; he let them chose where they wanted to live and took the position of Sesshoumaru's Chief of Security. He also adopted me as a little sister after he finally married Ayame, another wolf demon. No one protects like a wolf after all!" She spun around and continued walking and talking. "Shippou stayed with Sesshoumaru, Kouga, and Ayame when I traveled back and forth between here and the present before the well closed up for the four hundred or so years that covered the time difference between my homes. I haven't aged and have the lifespan of a demon, by the way. I now go back and forth through the Barrier to visit my family, and the time that the well was sealed hasn't changed for them or the world. For that period of time, I was disconnected from the future. Shippou was raised by me and went through training from the two idiots I call my brothers."

She stopped walking once she finished the narration and spun around abruptly to face everyone. "So, any questions for me? We're almost there by the way," before Kuwabara could ask as he looked enviously at Botan floating alongside the group on her oar.

Surprisingly Hiei spoke, "What is your position in the Western Lands?"

"Aside from the occasional purification," the priestess asked. Hiei nodded slightly in her general direction. "Well," she said thoughtfully, "I really don't have an official title or job or anything like that. I usually mediate any issues that come up in the towns in my general area and anything major that Sesshoumaru calls for me to do; I was the one who helped settle the treaty between us and Reikai and the one between us and each of the former Three Kings. I tried to go to night school in Ningenkai for business, but after a few classes it was pretty useless as I had dealt with enough already to earn my masters degree in three years." Kagome laughed softly, "I just kept testing out of things and racking up credit hours until I was moved to the graduate school and continued testing out until I took a year to write my thesis and earn my second degree. I'm also called on by any demons that have migrated to Ningenkai and start businesses there and I sort out the differences in legal matters and act as their liaison between planes. Anything else?" Kagome received an assortment of blank stares, impatient looks, and negative gestures. "Alright then, welcome to the Western Lands!" She turned around again and walked a few feet around a corner on the path through the forest and the group was treated to a startling view of lush green farmland and a mass of marble and granite forming a castle in the distance.

"Uh Kagome," Botan asked hestitantly.

"Yes Botan?"

"Is that palace your home?"

"Uh huh. Sesshoumaru wasn't using it so I took it since I like being this close to the forest. Why?"

"It's so big! I thought that you would live somewhere close to one of Lord Sesshoumaru's castles, not live in one yourself!"

"Did I forget to mention that I'm Sesshoumaru's heir just in case something happens to him? It's kind of a life insurance policy as no one here really wants to see a priestess rule, so there are no attempts on his life anymore. People like me and all, but liking a member of the lord's court, however strange they are, is completely different from someone like me ruling over them. Not that I want to anyway. If something ever happened and I had to rule for more than a temporary thing, I would turn everything over to Shippou, who has been trained by Sesshoumaru to be his real heir. Honestly, I'm just a cover."

Koenma looked a little pale as he stared at the sheepish priestess. "Why on earth wasn't I told about this situation?"

Kagome shrugged, "Why would Reikai need to know?"

After leaving Koenma speechless, which Yusuke and Kuwabara immediately made remarks on, Kagome looked at all of them and said, "So, welcome to my home. Come on, the castle isn't as far as it looks." Without waiting for acknowledgement, Kagome started walking towards her home, her steps light and cheerful.

True to Kagome's word, it only took fifteen minutes to reach the castle. There was no outer wall or any kind of defensive gate anywhere, just a wide stone path leading up to the large front doors. Without any kind of announcement, Kagome pushed them open and waltzed through. She just managed to walk over the threshold before she was engulfed by a brown blur and swung around in circles.

"Kouga! Put me down," the priestess shouted, though the effect was ruined by her grin and laughter. "I missed you too. Where's Maru?"

"Kagome, must you insist on calling me that name," came the sophisticated voice from her right. Lord Sesshoumaru, in all his silvery glory, stepped up to his adopted sister and formally nodded his head to her. Kagome was having none of that and vaulted herself as the distinguished figure in formal clothes and squeezed him for all he was worth; after a few seconds, in which he sent Kouga an aspirated glance, he swept her up in an equally loving embrace.

Putting his sister back on her feet, he raised a negligent eyebrow at the group from Reikai. "Who are these people?" Kagome walked over to group to introduce them.

"Hey, we're the ones who-" Yusuke stopped suddenly when Kagome's elbow jabbed sharply into his solar plexus. Smiling brightly at the winded detective, she pointed to Koenma first.

"This is Prince Koenma of Reikai and its current acting ruler." The prince bowed shallowly to the now-impassive lord.

"Next to him is one of his grim reapers, Botan." The kimono-clad girl bowed deeply to show respect.

"The rest is the aide Koenma is lending us. You know Youko," the fox briefly flashed into his original form and grinned. "Youko goes by Kurama now. To Youko's right is Hiei, an expert swordsman." She nodded to Sesshoumaru thoughtfully. "He is around your skill level; I'd be interested to watch if you two ever spar."

"On Youko's immediate left is Kuwabara Kazuma. He has a strong spiritual sense and gift. Next to him is the outspoken idiot and team leader, Urameshi Yusuke." Ignoring the sputtering from the last introduction, she threw an amused glance to each of her brothers. "His manners should remind you of how Yasha was all those years ago."

Kouga snorted. "You mean how he still is."

Kagome ignored that remark and looked over at the Reikai group. "These are my brothers: Lord Kouga of the Wolves of Wind, Chief of Security and Lord Sesshoumaru of the House of the Moon, ruler of the Westerns Lands. So," she said turning her head to look at her brothers, "has everyone from the court and the council settled in? I assume they're all housed in the guest rooms in the wings?"

"Yeah, everyone's here. Good thing no one else showed up. This place isn't big enough for any more. We had to fill up the south tower with all the entertainers and extra servants everyone just had to bring along, just like you said to do. Ayame and I are all set up in the north tower and Maru is all good in the west," Kouga commented. "Where are you putting them?"

"Well, it's only the four of them," Kagome gestured to the team of spirit detectives, "that are staying. I was going to put them up in the east tower. I only have three spare bedrooms there," she said to the four men, "so two of you have to bunk up."

"Watch yourselves," Sesshoumaru ordered coolly and strode out of the room. His voice floated back to them as he walked away, "Dinner is formal tonight with the council in five hours."

Kouga shuddered at the thought of formal wear, as he was still partial to his furs and leather. "Call if you need anything little sister. I have to go check on Ayame and make sure she hasn't killed someone out of frustration yet. You know how she gets around the court."

Kagome grinned cheekily, "Yeah, she's almost as bad as you!" The priestess dodged a playful swipe and kissed him quickly on the cheek. "I'll be up in the east tower until dinner, so if you and Ayame did to escape for a few hours come and find me."

Kouga chuckled. He turned around and jogged up the grand staircase branching off to the left, disappearing from sight.

"Okay. Koenma," the priestess began. "I have two charms here, one for you and one for you, Botan. They allow you to create a portal for only you two to this spot, should you need to come here. I know you have means to check in with the guys, so that's your thing. You don't have to contact me, just pop over. The portal with not immediately activate if all of us are off the castle grounds; the charms will notify me that you're trying to cross over and I have to give them permission. Out of courtesy, I will only deny that permission if it is unsafe for you to appear; for instance, I will deny permission if we are in the middle of a fight."

Without ceremony, or asking permission for that matter, Kagome grabbed Koenma's right wrist and slipped a gold ring with a pink stone on his index finger. She shifted to Botan and did the same. "Now," she said clapping her hands together. "You two go off and deal with all the paperwork this problem has created. Lucky you. You can use a portal to get back from anywhere once you're on my grounds." Botan opened a portal and just as the two Reikai officials were about to step through, Kagome added to her statements. "Oh, and Koenma. Don't you dare send the Special Forces Team here; chances are they will be killed before they can talk to me. They hate me, being a priestess and a human that helps demons and whatnot; they're not too fond of the refugees the Western Lands shelter either."

Koenma nodded and replied, "They don't listen to me half the time anyway. They're really my father's team; I can't promise anything though. If my father sends them, I can't do anything except warn you that they're coming. They have to go through the Forest of Ages like we did, so you'll have a few minutes before they get here if it comes to that."

Kagome smiled cheerfully, "Not a problem as long as you don't send them. Have fun with the papers!"

Botan and her boss walked through the portal and disappeared, but not before the ferry girl gave the group a cheery wave and smile.

"Now then," Kagome abruptly twirled around on her heels to face her guests. "I'll decide the rooming situation for you four since it's my place and I don't want damage. I have three spare rooms of varying sizes; Kurama and Hiei, you two get the biggest room, as there are two of you and it's a suite. Yusuke and Kuwabara, you can fight out who gets what room out of the two that are left. One is bigger than the other, but the first person to so much as scratch the walls will be stuffed into the smallest closet I can find and only let out for fights." Seeing the look of competitive glee on the two rivals' faces, Kagome sighed smiled lightly and said, "The room's wards will key to the spirit energy signature of the first person to walk through, so no cheating. Make sure it' the room you want before you walk all the way in too. The two single rooms are on the third floor you come to in the east tower, which is up the left side of that staircase and another left after you reach the top of the stairs. Have fun boys." Kuwabara and Yusuke merely glanced at each other before pushing each other and racing for the stairs, colorful and creative profanity following behind them.

Kagome giggled at the sight, before turning back to the two demons behind her. "Well, you two get a floor to yourselves. It's the floor above the idiots and below my rooms. Come on, I'll show you the way. If we hurry we can catch the tail-end of the performance." Grabbing a cheerful kitsune's right arm and a decidedly less cheerful hiyouki's left arm, she practically skipped them up the stairs.

During the skipping, of which only Kagome was participating in, Kurama smiled down at her and asked, "So, how did you know that Hiei and I were lovers? I don't recall ever telling you that information."

Hiei choked on air and looked over at the smiling duo. He asked Kagome, "Tell me what and how you know miko." Okay, so Hiei demanded, what else is new?

It was Kurama's turn to look surprised, "You didn't know that she knew? I thought that was what she told you to be so receptive in Koenma's office."

Kagome piped up, happier now than before because she had managed to fluff Kurama's tails _and _Hiei's hair. "Actually, I knew Hiei from the Feudal Era when he was still very young, about twenty in human years. I was off by myself for a bit, training and whatnot, and was heading for a hot spring I knew of when I stumbled on a bunch of stupid snake demons trying to eat Hiei. I killed them, spend some time with Baby Hot Head over here, and set him up with an apprenticeship in a tolerant demon village the group and I had come across a few months before and helped them out with some Naraku-related issues. The rest is history. What I said to Hiei in the office was that I remembered him and was glad to see him again after so long. We had about two years of visits together before the well and the jewel pulled me back for those years. We met up again quite frequently after that, even though Hiei didn't live in lands under Maru's rule. We have both been busy these last couple of years and haven't seen each other. Once you both started talking to me about your lovers, and I caught you having a heated discussion with your tongues off the path through the Forest, I kind of figured out the rest."

Kagome grinned cheekily at the men gaping at her. "What?" Simultaneously, Kurama and Hiei had an epiphany of a payback idea that, with a little bit of mental communication to synchronize the plan, was a stroke of sheer genius. With identical combinations of cat-in-the-cream grins and the leer of a sexual predator, the fox and his fire demon jumped the petite miko and took her by surprise. They landed in a position against the wall that screamed sexual: Kurama had his back to the wall with his face nuzzling Kagome's neck, his hands twined quite suggestively around her lower body and his fingers were tracing light lazy circles up and down her thighs; Hiei had one hand tangled in the miko's hair with a firm grip on the mass of raven locks while his other hand played blatantly with the buttons on her shirt, his face tipped dangerously close to her own. The whole movement had taken two seconds max.

Whilst Kurama continued nuzzling, Hiei locked eyes with the stunned, and pinned, woman and purred, "Would you like to know how heated our discussions can really get?" For an added measure, he flicked open the first three buttons of her blouse in a lightning-fast movement and toyed with the fourth.

Kagome's face flamed in a blush that amazing didn't torch her hair. Then she calmed and, face a normal color, said matter-of-factly, "I would love to, if it wasn't for the fact you two are completely devoted to each other and the simple matter of me just not being able to keep up with two demons."

Hiei blinked once and then smiled, a rare, true smile that left his crimson eyes shining. Kissing her cheek fondly, the fire demon untangled himself from her front and Kurama pushed both of them off the wall with his back. He too kissed her on the cheek and detached himself from the priestess. Linking arms once again, the three went up the flight of stairs to the third floor of the east tower in time to see Kuwabara going flying headfirst into the smaller of the two rooms and Yusuke gleefully slamming the door behind him. Said door glowed purple-blue for a second, flared Kuwabara's golden orange, and then settled down.

Yusuke looked over at the owner of the tower and grinned cheekily, "We didn't even damage anything! Do I have to close my door for the wards to active too?" At Kagome's nod, the three watched as a scarily cheerful Yusuke closed the door to his room behind him; they watched the same color show, with the exception of Yusuke's color of bright blue instead of the gold. They continued to watch as Yusuke opened to door again and walked over to the three with linked arms.

'_He is still smiling that stupid smile_,' Kagome thought warily. '_What on earth is so amusing? Oh shit._' The priestess looked down at her still halfway-opened shirt and back up at Yusuke, only to see his grin widen. Kurama and Hiei saw this and, deciding on more payback, ran up the stairs to their room out of sight, out of arrow range, but not out of hearing distance. Kagome growled at their now vacant places next to her and looked up at Yusuke and his stupid smile.

'_Great, now he has a perverted twinkle in his eye too._' Kagome's left eye twitched at her thought.

"So," the Spirit Detective began casually, "You were alone for ten minutes with two demons you are 'close friends' with," here he so kindly placed air quotes around the words 'close friends'. "You come up a staircase that will lead to their bedroom or yours and your shirt is halfway open." Yusuke leaned in closer to the blushing and stuttering priestess. "Care to have a repeat performance, or are you booked up for the night?"

His response, after a few seconds of half-hearted slow breathing on Kagome's part, was to be shoved backward with a blasted of miko energy, shielded from touching him but blowing him back by pushing on his aura and spirit energy. The priestess then stomped up the steps, sent another blast past the wards on the two traitors' door and slammed her own door shut a floor up. _'Stupid horny demons!'_

**END**

**Yu Yu Hakusho was written by Yoshihiro Togashi.**

**InuYasha was written by Rumiko Takahashi.**


	3. The Politics at Dinner

**Once again, I own nothing but the plot I created, bending the characters to my will.**

**PLEASE ENJOY!**

**MY REVIEWERS, I THANK YOU:**

**Kidnapped by a Demon – **Kagome will handle it in ways that only Kagome can handle things. :)

**sweet midnight kiss – **The wait is over! I hope you enjoy it!

**Elfgurl96 – **Kagome is very resilient and it was too tempting of an idea. Perhaps rosaries should make an appearance?

**Fairy Demon26 – **Well, I am so happy you liked it! I played around with her reaction a bit until Kagome told me what she wanted to do.

**dimensiontimetraveler – **I never thought about Youko/Kurama as gay…more of a bisexual fox kind of guy that I wanted with Hiei. As for Kagome, it wasn't planned. It just wrote itself in there. :)

**merlyn1382 – **Yes, payback is indeed a bitch and I can't wait to play with all those possibilities!

** MsDeathPhoenix - **I am delighted that it was both surprising and pleasing! It was fun to write!

**g2fan – **Why, now of course!

**As to the lateness of this chapter,** I am terribly sorry. This was intended to be up several months ago, but there were a series of family emergencies that took priority up until late month when everything calmed down. Things should be back to a normal update interval now. **I thank you for your patience!**

**Chapter Three - The Politics at Dinner**

_Previous Chapter:_

_His response, after a few seconds of half-hearted slow breathing on Kagome's part, was to be shoved backward with a blasted of miko energy, shielded from touching him but blowing him back by pushing on his aura and spirit energy. The priestess then stomped up the steps, sent another blast past the wards on the two traitors' door and slammed her own door shut a floor up. __'Stupid horny demons!'_

_'At least I'm not sparking anymore,'_ Kagome thought wryly as she got ready for the formal dinner in a few minutes. Since she owned the castle, the politicians couldn't start without her and she could be late without hearing anything from her lofty eldest brother. After a little therapy, which had involved a quick spar, read beat down, with the guard trainees all the Lords and Ladies brought with them and some venting time about the stupidity of said nobles to Ayame, Kagome was feeling significantly better. Glaring a little at the formal kimono that was the same bright purple-blue as her miko powers, Kagome shrugged into the formal wear and tied a white obi over it, to match the small flowers and petals in white on the kimono itself. As she fixed all the creases of the kimono into place, she remembered when her miko powers changed from pink to the color she now so proudly wore; her once brown eyes were now blue to show all that she had mastered her powers. Stepping into white-strapped geta, the Priestess of the Western Lands began her descent from her room to the rooms of the Spirit Detectives.

Hiei and Kurama's room, or the lovers' room as she had come to think of it, was her first stop and the two met her outside the doors by the staircase, never ones to be late. Hiei was dressed in his customary black, but a cloak and pants set that was of much higher quality than his usual attire. _'Wow, there's even a red dragon embroidered on the left sleeve,'_ Kagome realized in surprise. That Kurama was dressed in a white silk tunic and wide loose pants of the same was not a surprise and neither was his choice of appearing in his full demon form as Youko Kurama, The Bandit King. His long silver hair was tied back in some kind of elaborate ponytail that had the appearance of Kurama rolling out of a very satisfied bed. Said satisfied kitsune tucked his signature red rose into her up-do of tendrils and kissed her on the cheek.

"You look lovely, Kagome," Kurama said. As the three linked arms, Kurama laughed a little to himself and waved off Kagome's questions. Hiei, catching Kurama's thought, smirked. _'So the detective is scenting out our priestess. This should prove entertaining,'_ the fire demon thought cheerfully. Well, as cheerful as Hiei can be which borders more on maniacal laughter than anything else.

The three friends made their way down one more flight of stairs and weren't surprised that they had to knock on the remaining team members' doors, as they were not waiting outside. Sighing impatiently when the group's calls, shouts, and threats were ignored, the blue-eyed woman simply glared a bit at the doors and opened them with access from the wards. Kuwabara's door shut a few seconds afterward, as the trio was treated to the sight of Kuwabara dancing around in his boxers trying to get into his pants.

As Kurama restrained Hiei from killing the idiot, Kagome turned to look at Yusuke's room and immediately turned a bit pink and looked away. The Spirit Detective was watching her with the same smirk from a few hours before, the same perverted twinkle in his eye. The shirtless Yusuke grabbed his missing garment off the back of a blue velvet armchair and sauntered out to the waiting group. Hiei had stopped twitching at the sight of a mostly naked Kuwabara and now watched Kagome and Yusuke with almost cruel amusement in his eyes. He and his fox exchanged a glance, then nodded to the priestess and walked down the stairs.

"Traitors," Kagome muttered under her breath. She looked over at Yusuke quickly, and then just as quickly looked away when she realized he had made no move to put on his shirt. "Will you put on that shirt? We need these people to like you, not want to kill you for a lack of decorum."

The perverted detective leaned down to look at Kagome's averted face. "I could care less about snobby morons and what they think; the question is whether or not _you_ want me in a shirt. So, what's your answer Kagome?"

Yusuke hit a nerve and the priestess's head whipped around to glare at him, her eyes starting to glow purple-blue as her miko powers raged. "You don't have to deal with these people after this mission, but I do. Because I am the representative of Sesshoumaru and your liaison with these 'snobby morons', anything and everything you do is reflected onto me and I have enough to deal with considering the fact that the natural prejudice that demons have for mikos and humans is already a major pain in my ass. I also have the problem of being so close to Sesshoumaru and Shippou because most of the nobility is not aware of the relationship we have with each other and why I am so close and have so much influence with the two most powerful demons in Makai, not to mention my friendships with Kouga, Ayame, and Youko. So excuse me if I have an issue with my honor being questioned because some idiot can't be bothered to care about anyone but himself and the consequences of his actions." Kagome looked away again, this time in anger, and missed Yusuke's suddenly serious expression. The priestess breathed slowly and said impassively, "Wait for Kuwabara and then go down to the top of the main staircase. There will be a set of double doors in the center, and that is the room where Kurama, Hiei, and I will meet you. Then, I will lead you all to the formal dining room."

Kagome took another deep breath and murmured a few words to teleport her to the room that she mentioned. Her priestess powers extended far enough that she linked a teleporting spell she learned from Sesshoumaru into the wards of her castle, so if there was a problem somewhere, she could be at that spot instantly. _'Too bad it doesn't work outside of the wards_,_'_ Kagome thought sourly to herself as she reappeared in the small sitting room above the stairs. She had dubbed it the 'pre-torture' room before her first formal dinner that she hosted, as she would meet her escort here first and then descend the stairs into her version of Hell.

As usual, Shippou was escorting her tonight, though tonight it would be his last night doing so since he was to be mated soon. _'My little fuzz ball, all grown up_,_' _Kagome thought a bit tearfully. _'At least everyone will know he is my son after tonight_._'_ Tonight's gathering was also to make a mating announcement for Shippou and Asami, who finally accepted Shippou as her mate after, in true kitsune fashion, a thorough chase. Even though Asami was a brown earthen kitsune, the two were so in love that their differences in elements and in power measures, Shippou's six tails to Asami's four, didn't apply in their relationship. Frankly, Kagome was so happy that her son had found love, she wouldn't have cared if his mate turned out to be a centipede demon with no legs. Looking at said grown fuzz ball, Kagome felt her eyes tear up and stubbornly sniffed them back when Shippou looked at her in alarm and worry.

"Mama, you aren't going to start crying again are you? You know I hate it when you do that," the red kitsune asked as he winced.

One stubborn sniff later and Kagome smacked the back of his head sharply. "Of course I'm not going to cry," she exclaimed, clearly lying through her teeth as her eyes grew watery again.

Asami laughed softly and embraced Kagome. "Kagome-san, if you start crying then I will not let you name our first pup," the vixen threatened softly. Kagome's head shot up in surprise.

"You're going to do what?" Kagome's eyes rapidly flicked between Shippou and Asami. At Shippou's nod, she threw her arms around both kitsune and squeezed the life out of them. "You two are too nice for your own good! I appreciate the honor, more than you know, but I want you to name all of your pups; that is a special bond I don't want you two to miss out on," Kagome's smile widened to a cheeky grin as she added, "But if you decide to name your first daughter after me, I won't complain! Just keep her away from magic wells, okay?"

The occupants of the room all shared a laugh and the anxiety that the priestess had been feeling all day vanished into the lightening atmosphere. At least until Yusuke and Kuwabara burst into the room. While Hiei snorted in disgusted amusement at the humorous display of the detectives, Kurama merely rolled his eyes in a way that suggested many years of patience. Shippou, noticing the way Kagome tensed slightly at the loud entrance, snagged her shoulders and soothingly brought her to his side and rubbed her arm while glaring at the two loudest members of the Spirit Detectives. Kuwabara caught the vibes the fire kitsune was throwing their way and gulped audibly while slowly sliding away from Yusuke.

Kagome caught on the over-protectiveness of her son and promptly elbowed him in the ribcage with a murmured, "Ship, stop. This is a happy occasion and nothing is wrong." In a louder voice meant to carry to the rest of the occupants in the room, Kagome continued. "Now, it's time for the dinner. Shippou, would you be a dear and escort your mother for the last time?" Her eyes watered again. Kagome just couldn't help it! She was just so happy for her son.

Shippou swept his mother an elaborate bow, tucked her hand into the curve of his elbow and walked through the doors that opened with a thought from Kagome. Following the mother-son pair was Sesshoumaru, gracefully escorting Asami both to show his approval over the match and so that she wasn't alone. '_For a kitsune, Asami can be so shy with crowds,_' Kagome thought with a light giggle as she swiftly glanced behind her at the vixen's uncharacteristically lowered eyes. Kouga and Ayame followed them, and the four Spirit Detectives fell into step behind the wolves. Together, they descended the staircase in full view of all the nobles waiting on the hostess and her party to enter the dining hall before them. The miko turned to the right and led the way to, what in her mind, equaled Hell itself.

The nobles filed in after Kagome's group and sat and designated seats, arranged by someone far more knowledgeable of rank and self-importance than Kagome. '_I just don't have the time or the patience to cater to the whims of those I don't even like. Still, I am in awe of Setsuna's skill in managing these things without any blood spilled because of seating arrangements,_' Kagome thought to herself thinking of her faithful Master of Decorum. She was seated at the right hand side of Sesshoumaru, who sat at the head of the table. Shippou was on his left, both positions of power some nobles were still miffed to see in place. Asami was seated between Shippou and Kurama, and opposite Kouga and Ayame; that Kurama was seated at the high end of the table was not a surprise, as he was family member to Sesshoumaru's heir. Also, once people got a good look at some of the Mazoku marks on Yusuke's face and hands, it was also not surprising that the heir of Raizen was seated next to Ayame. What really ruffled feathers was that Hiei, a prominent demon, yes, but not of any standing was seated next to Kurama; even worse there was a human at the table! And not just anywhere, but next to the Mazoku heir! Outrageous! Thankfully, the rule about no politics until the council meetings after dinner delayed the more zealous reactions, though some forks were bent dangerously and knives were held in white-knuckled grips suspiciously pointed towards the head of the table.

Two very long and tense hours later, Kagome rose, indicating that dinner was now over and the business would commence. Dinner before business and politics was the standing rule under Kagome's roof as she had found that full demons were less inclined to kill each other. Not that some of them didn't try to kill each other now and again, but it was for less stupid reasons and a bit less frequent. As the hostess of the gathering, Kagome called the shots for the agenda of meetings and issues to be discussed. It was the same everywhere; those who hosted were in charge, no matter the ranking. To keep this fair, all meetings and their places had to be approved by Sesshoumaru and the meetings generally took place in the area of major concern. In this case, Kagome was housing the detective team and was the closest to the hole in the barrier.

"Before we begin with issues from each area of the Western Lands," Kagome began, "we must address the issue of the hole in the Kekkai Barrier. Lord Sesshoumaru has approved my solution, which we will disclose momentarily. There is, however, another reason why you have been called to gather together, specifically in my hall." She nodded to Shippou and Asami and continued speaking as they stood and walked to either side of Sesshoumaru, who also stood. "My son Shippou, Heir to the Throne of the Western Lands, has decided upon a mate. Lady Asami is his chosen and he has chosen well."

And this statement, Sesshoumaru took each of the kitsune's hands and clasped them together; holding their joined his, Sesshoumaru spoke, "Before all those assembled here, this Sesshoumaru of the House of the Moon, Lord of the Westerns Lands formally acknowledges Shippou, son of the Shikon Miko Kagome Higurashi of the House of the Moon as my heir. Asami, Lady of the Northern Kitsune is hereby recognized as Shippou's mate and the mate of my heir. They are now of my clan, the House of the Moon." At the completion of Sesshoumaru's speech, a blue crescent moon appeared on Shippou's forehead, marking him as the heir and identical markings of a flame bordering a lily, the sign of Shippou and Asami, appeared on their left shoulders nestled above their collarbones.

As the trio made their way back to their seats, the assembled nobility tried to regain their collective composure at not only the formal naming of Sesshoumaru's heir and his mate, but the fact that the miko was the heir's mother! The well-kept secret was shocking on the level that a miko adopted a youkai, not to even mention the fact that the secret was kept for so long!

Kagome decided to take advantage of the shock of the nobles and nodded to the detective team. "Now, onto the problems of the barrier. Invoking the treaty between the Western Lands and Reikai, Lord Koenma has given us use of the aide of his top Spirit Detective team: Urameshi Yusuke, Kuwabara Kazuma, Hiei, and Youko Kurama." Here, she threw sharp glances at known dissenting voices to her place in power and those who had no problem showing their hatred of humans. Raising her voice to make a point, she let her pure aura softly outline her form enough to make the point stick, but not enough the threaten anyone present. "These four are here to help close the barrier and shall remain in my hall until this mission is complete. They are here under my protection, in my lands and outside of them. I take direct responsibility for any and all of the actions of the team and any and all actions they make as individuals until this matter is resolved." Some, mostly those who already knew about this development, noticed that Yusuke's expression darkened and he looked away from Kagome slightly. Taking no notice of this gesture, the miko continued, "If anyone of you gathered here has a legitimate concern after this meeting is over, you are welcome to stay here until I can address those concerns. I will not," her aura pulsed as her gaze grew hard as her eyes swept the room, "tolerate any harm or hostility towards these four, my son, his mate, or Lord Sesshoumaru. This is the best way to solve the problem we have because some believe that life in the Western Lands is somehow lacking. Now, I will explain just how we are fixing this mess."

Kagome's aura died down as her expression lightened into a neural one, though she moved to the other end of the table to stand at its head so all could see her. Clasping her heads delicately in front of her, she faced her recovering audience, knowing that this would be difficult. '_If only this could be simpler and everyone could just see that this is the only way to handle this problem. Why did they have to go and try to conquer Ningenkai anyway? Waste of everyone's time…,_' the priestess thought to herself. Taking a deep breath and steeling herself for the political ordeal about to occur, Kagome outlined their plan to patch the hole in the Kekkai Barrier. Unfortunately, the Spirit Detectives would not simply be helping Kagome pour power into the tear, guard the border, and 'discourage' any demons from attempting to migrate to the human's world. As easy as that would seem, it was all Kagome could tell the nobles assembled since she, Kouga, and Sesshoumaru suspected that there had to be someone who was feeding information to the rogue bodyguards this high up in the chain of command. That would be the focus of the Spirit Detectives real mission, to ferret out any supporters of the rebellion in the army's ranks and those within the court from servants to nobles. '_It isn't as though I can just come out and say that I suspect a portion of the court of treason_,' Kagome thought glumly as she brought the 'public' plan to a close and relinquished her spot at the speaking area of the table to Sesshoumaru, who opened the floor to the everyday issues concerning the different areas of the Western Lands.

Snide subtle remarks were thrown into the reports of course, but the six most powerful people in all of the Western Lands let them go for once. Kouga did bend a few spoons into mangled shapes under the table, but it wasn't too much of a loss. Four exhausting hours passed until Lord Hiroshi of the Southern Crow Flock finished his report of his territory and the reporting session was concluded. Sesshoumaru thanked the court for their reports, well nodded politely at the assembled nobles, but it was the same thing. He turned to Kagome and motioned for her to draw the night's discussion to a close with one elegant gesture of a hand and a reassuring glint in is golden eyes.

The miko nodded slightly and conveyed a grateful gleam of her own as she bowed shallowly to her oldest brother. The miko turned to fully face her audience once more as Sesshoumaru took his seat at the other head of the table. Once the taiyouki settled into his chair, Kagome said, "The evening grows late and I thank you all for your reports of the Western Lands. These are invaluable to Lord Sesshoumaru. I will remain at the palace at all times for the next three days, cementing a plan of attack with Lord Sesshoumaru, Lord Kouga, and Prince Koenma's team. Then, I will join the detectives in the field. If you have concerns, please bring them to me in the next three days. We will, of course, keep everyone updated on the progress of the barrier whether you should choose to remain here or return to your homes. I do ask that everyone should plan to return home at the end of the three days, as I cannot guarantee your safety once an attack begins, since this palace is so close to the tear in the Kekkai Barrier. With that, I bid you all a lovely night."

Kagome turned around and walked out the door, this time unescorted, Sesshoumaru right behind her. Asami and Shippou were followed by Kouga and Ayame; the detectives took the cue from the others quickly enough and walked single-file out of the banquet hall all the way to the up and into the room at the top of the grand staircase where the evening had begun.

They all knew that something else was beginning; they just wished they knew what it was and if they could stop it in time.

**END**

**Yu Yu Hakusho was written by Yoshihiro Togashi.**

**InuYasha was written by Rumiko Takahashi.**


End file.
